He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not
by Minstrel of Madness
Summary: "Through everything, every victory, every defeat, Asuna had been by his side. After all they had been through together, he wouldn't abandon her so easily. He couldn't." Kirisuna. Post SAO.
1. Part 1

**He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not**

 _"If we make it back to the real world, I'll find you. And fall in love with you all over again."_

When she had spoken those words, they had both been scared of so much. Scared of death, scared of losing each other, scared of the possibility of one of them living and the other dying.

Scared that their bond was only as real as the world in which they had lived for so long.

She had said it to reassure him that her love for him was real, and perhaps to reassure herself, as well. In that moment, chest-to-chest on the balcony of their cozy little Floor 22 house, their fear had vanished for a moment. They had been happy, if only temporarily.

Three years later, after months of losing and finding each other again in worlds both real and virtual, Kazuto Kirigaya had held fast to her words just as strongly as he had the moment she said them. They had been his mantra in Aincrad, his maxim in Alfheim, his battle cry in Gun Gale. If he was really honest with himself, at a certain point she had become his only motivation for every choice he made. Every world he traveled, every foe he faced, every person he helped, every item he bought, every tear he shed, every word he spoke, was all for her.

And now it was all for naught.

Through the pouring sleet he swore he could hear the voices of his own insecurity screaming so many things at once. That he wasn't good enough for her. That he was too weak to protect her. That he was too naïve to understand her. That he was too stoic to cherish her.

That he was too selfish to love her.

Kazuto gritted his teeth and walked faster, as if somehow that would make the voices shut up. His damp hair clung to his face as he walked, but he didn't make any attempt to fix it. Where he was going, it wouldn't matter what he looked like, anyway. He didn't have to impress anyone, at least not anymore.

He kept walking until he finally arrived at a small building in the middle of the street. Packed in between two much larger establishments, his destination would have easily been missed by anyone who wasn't paying enough attention. With a sigh, he pushed open the wooden door and entered the building.

A deep, boisterous voice called out from behind the bar at the other side of the room. "Hey, Kazuto! What's up, man?"

He waved back unenthusiastically. "Hey, Agil."

As he made his way to the counter, Agil grinned broadly and set an empty glass in front of him. "What can I get for you today, Kazuto? I've got a new recipe, and I could use your–"

"Thanks," Kazuto interrupted, sliding onto one of the barstools, "but I'm not thirsty." He didn't elaborate further.

Agil stopped polishing glasses, slung his rag over his shoulder, and leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms and surveying his young friend with a critical eye. "You alright, man?" he asked.

Kazuto nodded, "I'm just here to clear my head." He fidgeted a little and avoided eye contact under that steady gaze.

Agil reached out and set his huge hand on Kazuto's shoulder. "Well, just say the word and I got you, okay?"

All the emotion Kazuto had been trying to suppress came welling up at this non-judgemental gesture of concern from one of his oldest friends. "I just don't get it, Agil," he sighed, fighting the tears stinging his eyes. "Why couldn't I go through with it? What was I so scared of?"

The bartender picked up a glass and started polishing again. "There's still time, isn't there?"

Kazuto shook his head sadly. "No, there isn't. It's over."

The glass crashed loudly agaisnt the floor and Kazuto looked up at Agil who had dropped it to loom closer, upset and surprised. "You mean…?"

"Yes. Asuna and I are through." The words left a bitter taste in his mouth as he said them, and he grimaced.

Agil rubbed his bald head in the unconscuious gesture he used when agitated. "Dang," he muttered, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry, man. I really thought–"

"Yeah, well, so did I." Kazuto detected a tinge of anger in his own voice. "And yet here we are."

"Wanna talk about it?"

Kazuto shook his head again, this time laying his head down on the counter. He wasn't sure who or what he was angry with. Was he mad at Agil for bringing it up? Was he mad at Asuna for calling it off? Or was he mad at himself for not being bold enough to take the next step?

Whatever the case, it didn't matter. Understanding why he was upset wouldn't change the situation.

Then again, if that were true, talking to Agil about it wouldn't do any real harm either. And it was probably better to at least figure out the source of his grief instead of just ignoring it. Even if it didn't change anything, he might feel a little better about it.

"She's transferring to a new University in a few days," he finally said flatly, not looking up. "I don't think she assumed I would support the decision."

"What do you mean?"

He raised his head to face Agil. "I think she expected me to put up more of a fight. To insist that she stay here, or something like that." He took a moment to wipe his eyes off. "But what good would that have done if I'll never see her again?"

"What happened?" Agil asked, finally stooping to clean up the broken glass on the floor.

A heavy sigh found its way through Kazuto's lips. "When she told me, I just kind of stood there. I didn't even say anything for a while. She finally asked me what I thought, and I told her I wouldn't stop her."

"Did you say anything else?"

Kazuto shook his head a third time. "At first she looked shocked, and then she started crying. I wanted to reach out to her, to comfort her, but instead I turned around and left. We haven't spoken since." He squeezed his eyes shut. "That was two and a half weeks ago."

Agil comiserated silently with him for several moments, his brow furrowed in thought. "I can't believe you never asked her."

 _Me neither_ , Kazuto thought. He ran his fingers through his hair before stuffing them awkwardly in his pockets, unsure of what to do with them.

Unsure. That pretty much described the entirety of his mental state. He didn't have any way of knowing what would happen next. Would he be able move on and forget about her? Or would that even be possible, given how much of his life she had occupied? She had meant so, so much to him.

 _I want to stay with you forever_ , she had told him once. _I want us to date for real. To really get married. To grow old together._

They had made a silent promise to each other that some day those desires would be real. Had it just been youthful naïvety?

"Kazuto?"

Agil's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He wiped his nostrils with his sleeve and looked up at his friend again. "I guess I just... panicked. It was too scary for me to go through with, so I ran."

"What was scary about it? Was it her father?"

Kazuto huffed a wry laugh. "No, I've had her father's blessing for months. And it wasn't the money, either." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a beautiful golden band with a sparkling white diamond in the center. "I've carried this with me every single day for the past five weeks, constantly convincing myself that today would be the day I finally asked her.

"But today always turned into tomorrow, and tomorrow to the next day, until finally I just lost my nerve completely. Some days it was that it wouldn't be romantic enough, other days it was that the time wasn't right." He fought the growing lump in his throat as he shoved the ring back into his pocket. "And now it's too late."

Agil opened his mouth and held up one finger as if he was about to say something, but apparently thought better of it at the last moment. He paced down the length of the empty bar and back, rubbing his head again. When he returned to his previous place across from Kazuto, he abruptly asked, "Do you love her?"

His question caught Kazuto off guard. "What are you talking about? Of course I–"

The bartender held up his hand, effectively cutting Kazuto off. "I'm not asking if you think she's attractive, or if you've got feelings for her. That ain't love, man. I mean, do you really, really love her?"

"Well, yeah," Kazuto replied with a shrug. He didn't really see where Agil was going with this, but he supposed he'd at least hear him out.

Agil shook his head. "Nah. See, with true love, you don't have to think. You just know." His face lit up for a second, and he ducked behind the counter for a moment before reappearing with a small piece of paper. "Lemme ask you something," he said as he handed the paper to Kazuto. "What do you see here?"

The paper was actually a photograph of Agil, smiling happily, standing next to a beautiful woman, who was in the middle of planting a kiss on his cheek. She was holding her hand up to the camera to show off a ring, as beautiful as the one meant for Asuna, adorning her finger.

"This must be when you and Kathy got engaged," Kazuto said, staring at the photo. "You look pretty excited, that's for sure."

Agil laughed. "Yeah, well, actually it wasn't until after I actually popped the question that I started feeling like that. I was pretty nervous, even though I was positive she'd say yes. But somehow, deep down inside, I just knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, and I would do anything at all to make that happen." He paused for a moment before he continued to speak. "The point is, I understand why you've been hesitating."

"You do?"

"Of course I do, man. This question, it's a big deal. There's a part of you that doesn't want to put yourself out there." He put a hand on Kazuto's shoulder. "But if you really love her, you gotta go for it. So I'll ask you again. Do you love her?"

Kazuto thought for a moment before nodding firmly. "Asuna is the best thing that ever happened to me."

"If she leaves, you might never see her again, you realize that, right?" Agil's tone turned somber, more serious than Kazuto had ever seen him before. "If you're gonna let her go, you have to be sure it's the right thing for you."

A billion memories of his time with Asuna flooded Kazuto's head in that moment. He thought back to the time they first met. They had been inadvertently put in a party together at the Boss Strategy conference on the first floor. He had never had any intention of continuing their necessary partnership, but the bravery and determination she had shown during the first boss fight left him secretly hoping their paths would cross again.

He thought back to the next time he had seen her. They had each been solo players, and despite this she had still asked for his help in gathering materials to upgrade her rapier. She had bet him that she could defeat fifty wasps faster than he could, a bet he had quickly agreed to. In the end, her speed and agility greatly outmatched his, and she easily won. He spent a lot of col on the meal he bought her that evening, but her company had somehow made it worth it.

He remembered how upset with him she had been after she saw him laying in the grass one day. She'd accused him of being lazy and wasting his time while the other front-liners put their lives on the line to clear the floor. Though he'd explained his motivations and even convinced her to join him, deep down inside he had realized that his actions had been somewhat selfish. He'd never say it out loud, but he was grateful that she was willing to keep him accountable to accomplish their collective goal.

Then, of course, there was the first time she'd cooked a meal for him. The only S-Class ingredient he or anyone he knew had ever found, and he'd almost sold it just because he couldn't cook it himself. Luckily, Asuna had waltzed into Agil's shop just before he completed the transaction, and after explaining that she'd just maxed out her cooking skill, offered to cook it for him. She'd taken him to her flat, where she cooked the most delicious meal Kazuto had ever tasted in his life. If he was honest with himself, that was when he really started having feelings for her, even though he didn't realize it at the time.

They'd formed a party again the next day, and over the next several days they spent much of their free time together. Kazuto remembered being astounded at the drastic improvement she had made to her swordsmanship since they'd last partied together. There were even a few moments where he would just sit back and admire how she made her fighting style an art form. Every stroke, every step, every movement was a part of a deadly dance between her and whatever enemy was unfortunate enough to cross her path.

And when they married, Kazuto couldn't think of a time in all of his life that he'd ever been happier than the two weeks they were together. As short as their time was together, those few happy days they shared were among his favorites.

Wiping a few more tears from his eyes, he swallowed hard and gritted his teeth. Through everything, every victory, every defeat, Asuna had been by his side. After all they had been through together, he wouldn't abandon her so easily. He couldn't.

He pulled the ring back out of his pocket, suddenly aware of what he had to do.

"I get it now, Agil," he said with a determined nod. "It won't happen on its own. I've gotta fight for it."

Without another word, Kazuto got up and sprinted out the door.

"Good luck, my man!" he heard Agil call off in the distance. "Tell me how it goes, alright?"


	2. Part 2

Kazuto's fingers were numb from the cold air, but it didn't stop him from knocking as hard as he could on the door looming in front of him.

 _Please, Asuna,_ he thought with a shiver. _Please open up._

No answer.

Kazuto swore under his breath and, blowing on his fingers to warm them up a bit, knocked again, harder this time.

After a brief pause, a muffled voice called out from inside. "Who is it?"

Swallowing his fear and ignoring his pounding heartbeat, Kazuto called back. "Asuna, it's me."

He heard a shuffle of footsteps inside, and then another pause. Then, a small _click_ from the doorknob indicated that she had unlocked the door. That in and of itself was progress; he hadn't even been expecting her to respond to him at all.

The door opened, albeit just a crack, so that all he could see was a few strands of chestnut hair and one auburn eye peeking back at him.

"What do you want?" Asuna growled. Clearly he was not at the top of her list of people she wanted to see.

Kazuto chuckled and shivered simultaneously. "Nice to see you, too," he muttered as he hugged his chest. "Is now a bad time?"

Asuna glared at him and shut the door in his face.

"I'm guessing now _is_ a bad time, then?" he called out, trying to calm his chattering teeth.

"Go home, Kazuto," came the reply.

His lips were on the verge of peeling and his fingers felt like they were about to fall off, but he kept trying. "If it's worth anything, I'm sorry for the sarcasm."

Silence.

"Do you have any idea how cold it is out here?"

More silence.

"You know, if I stay out here much longer I'm going to get sick."

Behind the door, he heard Asuna scoff. "Sounds like a personal problem."

"Is it now?" he shot back, blood rushing to his cheeks out of either frustration or embarrassment. "Because you could just as easily let me in and solve it."

Just as quickly as it had shut, the door flew open, revealing a very angry Asuna on the other side. Her usually cream-colored cheeks were flushed red, and her brow was creased in a manner she only reserved for the most heated of arguments.

"Solve it how?" she demanded, pointing a finger in his face. "By nursing you back to health? This isn't SAO anymore, Kazuto. I'm not your wife in this world."

Kazuto sighed. "Please, Asuna, just hear me out."

"And why, do tell, should I do that?"

"Because it's important!"

"Oh, sure." Her tone was laced with mockery. "It must be pretty important if you're going to insist upon talking about it after not speaking to me for almost three weeks."

"That's not fair."

Before he could even process what was going on, Asuna's hand met his cheek with a forceful smack. He winced as he gingerly touched the tender skin, which stung furiously.

"Don't you _dare_ talk to me about what isn't fair," Asuna hissed, her scowl as sharp as a knife. "You want to know what isn't fair? It isn't fair that _I_ was still trapped inside a virtual coma for two months while _you_ and everyone else were out free. It isn't fair that _you_ spent so much of your time off in VR land while _I_ and everybody else you claimed to care about got thrown by the wayside."

"Asuna, you know that's not–"

"And it sure as _hell_ isn't fair that _I_ have to leave _my_ home and _my_ friends and _my_ family behind tomorrow, while _you_ get to waltz through life without making one _single_ hard decision about anything. At. All." Asuna shook her head. "But _noooo_. Me calling you out for simply walking out on me three weeks ago isn't fair."

"Will you please just listen to me?" he shouted, clenching his fists. "I didn't come here to argue with you, I came to apologize."

Asuna only sighed. "I don't know." The fire in her face had dissipated, replaced by a blank stare. "I think it's better that we both just move on."

"You can't actually believe that," he said in disbelief. After all they had been through together there was no way that was how she actually felt. He wouldn't accept that. Not for a moment.

"Clearly _you_ do."

Kazuto's eyes widened and his throat closed. Her words left him stunned. As much as he wanted to believe otherwise, she was right about him. He had moved on, or at least that was how he'd been acting. This whole time he'd been blaming _her_ for ending their relationship, when in reality _he_ was the problem. He couldn't fault her for being angry with him.

Was it wiser to just turn and leave again?

 _No_ , he told himself. _Not this time. This time it'll be different._

He was ready to take Agil's advice. He was ready to fight.

She turned away from him, taking a step back into her apartment. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some packing to finish."

Kazuto reached out and grabbed her wrist, feeling her flinch at the sudden contact. "Wait," he pleaded softly, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "Please."

She met his gaze, pulling her hand from his grip. For what felt like an eternity, time seemed frozen as he waited for her response. Her expression was unreadable; her eyes didn't seem angry anymore but they certainly didn't have any warmth to them, either.

And yet, Kazuto found a strange sense of reassurance in her gaze. Maybe it was because she had been the one that taught him everybody deserved a chance at redemption, that no one could ever fall too far from grace. She had always been the kindest, most forgiving person he'd ever met. And while he had made some pretty nasty mistakes, he had to believe that she'd give him another shot.

Asuna nodded reluctantly, gesturing to the doorway. "Fine," she said, almost begrudgingly. "You have ten minutes."

What he wanted to say would likely take more than ten minutes, but he supposed that he really wasn't in any kind of position to negotiate with her. He followed her inside, where several cardboard boxes littered the floor. They all had various messages written on them denoting their contents, such as "books" or "clothes." The sight made Kazuto sad, evidence that in less than twenty-four hours she would be gone from his life permanently.

Asuna sat down on her now-bare mattress and crossed her arms. "Well?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

Kazuto cleared his throat. "Yeah." Droplets of sweat were pooling on his forehead, and he was becoming more nervous by the second. He quickly stuffed his shaking hands into his pockets and did his best to form a coherent thought.

"Nine years ago," he said with a pensive sigh, "I quit kendo. My grandfather was a kendo champion, and he had insisted that Sugu and I take lessons."

He grimaced as he recalled bitter memories of the dojo and the boring lessons he had to endure week after week. "I hated it. Every single lesson. I put up with it for two years before I'd finally just had enough. So I quit."

Asuna cocked her head to the side in a mixture of annoyance and confusion. "What does you quitting kendo have anything to do with us?"

"I promise I'll get there. Just listen to me."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"My grandfather was furious with me. The night he found out I'd been skipping my lessons, he beat me so hard I couldn't move my arm for three whole days. It was awful." He gently touched his arm, wincing when his fingertips made contact. "It still hurts sometimes, even now.

"Sugu saved me by promising to train enough for both of us, which still made Grandfather really upset, but at least he stopped hitting me. He and my mother would scream at each other for weeks after that on my account. I used to eavesdrop on them, though now I wish I hadn't." He turned away from her. "That's how I found out I was adopted."

He heard Asuna gasp quietly. "You're…" she muttered in disbelief. "Y-you're adopted?"

He nodded. "Grandfather asked my mother when she was planning on showing me the records. At the time, I didn't know what he was talking about, but being the curious eleven year-old I was, I dug around my mother's office one day while she was at work. There were government records on her computer confirming that I was the biological son of Yukito and Aoi Narusaka."

Asuna appeared dumbfounded. "I-I never knew."

"It never seemed important enough for me to tell you." He sighed again. "At any rate, that was when I started becoming obsessed with computers. I started to be afraid of the real world, so I started looking for any and every opportunity to get away from it.

"When I learned about the NerveGear, I went out and bought one as soon as it came out. I was probably too young to really understand what I was doing, but I didn't care. As long as I could escape, I was satisfied."

Kazuto slowly, awkwardly sat down beside her, feeling the tension between them thicken. He gave her a look that asked, _Is this alright?_ The expression on her face showed conflicted emotions within her, but after a moment of thought she finally nodded in approval.

"The point of all this is this: for as long as I can remember I've always run away from my problems. It was always easier for me to hide in a fake world than to live here. But when I met you, I finally felt like I had the strength to stand and fight." He took her hand, and though she flinched again, she didn't stop him. "Asuna, you've taught me so, so much about life. And I will gladly travel to the end of this world and every other world just to be with you."

Asuna shook her head, sniffling quietly. "Do you really mean that?"

"Absolutely."

He wiped a stray tear from her cheek. "Remember what I promised you in the canyon?" he asked, squeezing her hand.

She nodded through muffled sobs. "You said your life was mine for the rest of our lives, and that you wanted to be with me forever."

Kazuto stood up and, taking both of her hands, knelt down on one knee. "You deserve someone much better than me, Asuna, but I can never imagine living my life without you at my side. I should never have walked away from you, and I am so sorry for that." He let go of her hands and reached into his back pocket. "I want to make that right, and finally honor my promise to you. Can you ever forgive me?"

As he drew his hand from his pocket, he gazed into Asuna's captivating hazel eyes. Despite her best efforts at controlling herself, she was crying profusely. Even so, Kazuto could tell they weren't the same tears she'd cried three weeks beforehand. These tears were tears of joy.

"Y-you idiot!" she half-cried, half-laughed, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder. "Don't you ever run away from me again, you hear?"

"Yes ma'am," he chuckled. "I promise."

He thought back to Agil's earlier words: _If you really love her, then you gotta go for it._ He hadn't been sure then, but now he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Asuna was the one person he wanted to spend his life with. The sweat on his brow and the quick beat of his heart were evidence that he was more than a little nervous, but he would have to put that off to the side. After all, if he didn't ask her now he knew he would never get another chance.

With a deep breath, he pulled away from her embrace and held out his closed palm. "I have another question."

He opened his hand, and Asuna cried out in a mixture of surprise and delight. Her hands flew to cover her gaping mouth as tears continued to pour down her face. Kazuto smiled. Somehow, seeing her reaction to the ring in his palm made what remained of his nervousness vanish completely.

"Asuna Yuuki," he said, lips curled into a smile wider than the sun, "will you grant me the honor of being your husband?" He held the ring up to her. "Will you marry me?"

Asuna squealed in delight and grabbed Kazuto's face with both hands. Without missing a beat, she pressed her lips onto his for the most sensational kiss he'd ever experienced. Her mouth glided overtop of his as he shut his eyes and drank in their love. The electrifying touch of her lips sent a jolt down his spine, the succulent taste made his knees weak.

He smiled. Asuna. _His_ Asuna.

"Oh, Kirito," Asuna whispered, her voice trembling from her tears. Her sobs turned to girlish giggles as she tackled him with another fervent embrace.

"Yes," she said, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck. "Yes, yes, _yes_!"

Kazuto held her tightly to him, gently running his fingers through her chestnut hair. Less than ten minutes ago she had been intent on leaving him behind forever, and now she was his fiancé. He wasn't really sure how or why it had to happen that way, but he was satisfied to be able to hold her in his arms again.

He gently took her left hand and, flashing her the brightest smile he could muster, slipped the ring onto her finger. It fit perfectly, almost like it was meant to be there all along.

"You have no idea how long I've waited to do that," he said, wrapping her in his arms.

She laughed and kissed his cheek. "Yes, I do."

Glancing at the boxes and bags scattered around him, Kazuto was struck by the sudden realization that she was technically still due to move the next day. His heart sank. It was too late to change her plans, Kazuto knew that. The new semester would start in about a week, and she had already selected all of her classes and bought all of her supplies.

He couldn't ask her to abandon her life on a selfish whim. That wouldn't be right.

"Asuna," he whispered dejectedly.

"Yes?"

"What are we going to do? I mean, you're about to move and all, and I can't ask you to–"

He was interrupted by Asuna's finger gently pressed against his lips. "Shhh," she cooed softly. "We'll figure something out. We always do."

Her words offered Kazuto no real solace. It was great advice, but didn't ultimately solve the problem staring him in the face:

In less than a day, she would be three hundred miles away from him. And he had no way to stop it from happening.

Unless…

"What if I came with you?" he blurted out, the words leaving his mouth so quickly he almost didn't have time to think about what he was saying. What _was_ he saying? He wasn't prepared to move _anywhere_ , much less to the other side of the country. He didn't have anything packed, and he hadn't told anybody he was even considering it, besides Asuna. He had no living arrangements, or a job, set up for when he got there, either. He kicked himself mentally. This was a horrible idea.

Then again, he'd gotten himself into this mess by not proposing to her earlier. If this would be what it took to get out of it, that was a price he'd be willing to pay.

Asuna cocked her head to the side in what appeared to be a combination of curiosity and nervousness. "Y-you mean," she stuttered, "move to Kyoto with me?"

"It'll only be for a few months, right?" Kazuto shrugged. "I mean, you took enough courses in high school to graduate at the end of the next semester, and all my classes are online anyways, so it's not like I really have any reason to stay here. We can always come back once you're done."

She considered his offer for a moment. "You'd do that for me?"

A playful smirk crossed Kazuto's face. "Didn't I just tell you I'd travel across the world to be with you?"

Instead of responding, Asuna strode over to the other side of the room, where a cardboard box marked 'Clothes' sat there patiently. She picked it up, carried it over to her empty closet, tore it open, and began to take her clothes out of it and hang them back up.

When she saw Kazuto staring at her with a perplexed look on his face, she chuckled and said, "Are you just going to watch or are you going to help me out?"

"What are you doing?"

"I'm unpacking."

"I see that," he said, a tinge of sarcasm in his voice, "but _why_?"

"Because I'm staying here," she told him matter-of-factly.

Kazuto's jaw hit the floor. "What?" he shouted incredulously. He couldn't believe what he was watching. It was too good to be true. Somehow seeing it with his own two eyes still didn't make it any more believable.

Asuna handed him a box labeled 'Books' and said, "I'm not moving. Not after what you just said, at least."

"I don't want feel like you have to sacrifice all of your plans because of me! That's not fair–"

"I'm not doing it because you're forcing me to. I want to do this." She put some of her books back on her bookshelf. "If you were willing to completely change your life for me, I should be willing to do the same for you."

"But Asuna, what about your classes? What about your degree? Everything you've worked so hard for?"

Asuna responded by wrapping her arms around his waist. "I don't need it," she said. "I wasn't lying when I said it didn't matter what I did as long as I was with you. I only changed my plans when I was scared you wouldn't be a part of them any longer." She sighed happily, resting her head on his shoulder. "I don't have to worry about that any longer. I'll finish college here, with you."

He gulped. "Are you sure?"

"M-hm."

Kazuto still found himself wanting to protest, to remind her of all the money she was throwing away, to tell her what an opportunity she'd be missing out on, but he decided against it. "Alright," he chuckled. "I guess I can tolerate that."

"I'm flattered." She shoved him playfully before giving his hand a gentle tug. "Now, c'mon, doofus! We have a wedding to plan! We need to decide on a date, pick a destination, think about who to invite, then there's the honeymoon to think about… Oh, of course! I almost forgot! We have to tell my parents that we're engaged and–"

He silenced her with another kiss.


End file.
